Furry Little Problem
by Jillie chan
Summary: "James called it my 'furry little problem' in company. Many people were under the impression that I owned a badly behaved rabbit."


Thank you Casidee for being my Beta.

Disclaimer: If I owned Harry Potter I'd have enough to pay my imagination's ransom (J.K. Rowling is holding it hostage)

"**But you are normal!" Said Harry fiercely. "You've just got a – a problem-"**

**Lupin burst out laughing. "Sometimes you remind me a lot of James. He called it my 'furry little problem' in company. Many people were under the impression that I owned a badly behaved rabbit."**- _Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince pg. 335_

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><p>Remus pushed the eggs on his plate around too sick of what had almost happened two nights ago. He had given Prongs and Padfoot the slip and had a run in with a wizard. Remus pressed the back of his hand against his lips, the fork still held in his hand; the wolf's longing to bite had over-whelmed him. If Padfoot hadn't shown up when he did and bit Moony on the ear-<p>

"So, I was thinking that next month we hit Honeydukes," James said in lue of a greeting, pilling sausages onto his plate.

On Remus's other side Siruis shook his head. "Na, I say we look at Zonkos; I'm running out of dungbombs."

Remus took a shuttering breath and set his fork down. "Actually, I was thinking-"

James buried his face in his hand. "And there he goes. Padfoot?"

"On it. Look, we don't have a problem with…hair. Okay, maybe James does, and you struggle with it once a month. After all," Sirius pushed a lock of dark hair out of his face, "we can't all be blessed with my good looks."

James threw a sausage at Sirius who laughed when it hit Peter instead.

"What Padfoot is trying to say is: we don't care about your 'furry little problem'. We are still your friends. We will always be your friends; until death do us part, until the stars grow cold and until Voldemort admits he's a woman!"

Sirius choked on some pumpkin juice at James's last statement and Peter paled as though afraid that Voldemort would appear at the blatant disrespect.

Remus shook his head. "It's just-"

"Excuse me."

The Marauders turned to see Finlay McFox, a Hufflepuff in the year ahead of them, offering a smile. "I couldn't help but over hear ("Not with ears like that," Sirius muttered into his cup.) but I think you should just put it down."

Remus blinked at the Hufflepuff. "Put it down?"

"Y'know, euthanasia? My mom is a vet, er a muggle healer for animals, and if there is an animal that always attacks without being provoked they have to put it down. And given your situation…"

Remus couldn't really hear McFox as the Hufflepuff's solution rolled around his head.

Just die? Was that really the answer?

Would his death really protect the rest of the Marauders?

Or (his mind flashed back to the unnamed wizard from two nights ago) other wizards and witches?

There was a scrape of wood against marble and Remus barely had time to restrain James from attacking McFox.

"DON'T YOU EVER CALL HIM AN IT AGAIN! AND IF YOU EVER SUGEST KILLING HIM AGAIN I'LL MURDER YOU MYSELF!"

McFox took a step back, his eyes shifted as he stared in horror at James and Remus. "Sorry, mate. Just trying to help."

"YEAH, WELL IF YOU EVER TRY TO 'HELP' AGAIN I'LL HEX YOU SO BADLY YOUR OWN MOTHER WON'T RECOGNIZE YOU!"

McFox looked between the two, his shoulder's sagging. "Sorry, Lupin, I didn't realize how attached you are to your rabbit."

"THAT'S-" James and the other Marauders froze.

_Rabbit?_

Remus quickly reviewed what McFox could have over heard, his thoughts drawn to Sirius's comment about Remus struggling with his 'hair' which must have been heard as 'hare'.

"Yes, my rabbit," Remus suppressed a smile as he gently closed James's gaping mouth. "Very attached to him."

James didn't fight as Remus forced him back into his seat, the dumbfounded expression still on the bespectacled boy's face.

"I appreciate the offer anyway, McFox," Remus allowed a small amount of his smile on his face, James mouthing 'rabbit?' to Peter and Sirius.

McFox nodded, looking ashamed of himself as he walked off.

The people whom had turned at James's outburst had settled back into the conversations they were having before.

James was still struggling with the rabbit conclusion, Sirius and Peter shook with suppressed laughter.

Remus finally put a fork full of eggs into his mouth as he thought.

"Y'know," Remus said, "we haven't investaged the Three Broomsticks yet."


End file.
